Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray the cups of a 12-muffin pan with the vegetable cooking spray. Gently press one wrapper into reach cup and lightly spray the wrapper with the spray. Bake for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Repeat with remaining wrappers.

In a small bowl combine the ricotta, spinach, eggs, cream, garlic, salt, black pepper, nutmeg, cayenne, and 1/4 cup Parmesan. Replace 12 of the baked cups into the muffin pan. Fill with one tablespoon of filling mixture. Sprinkle with more grated parmesan. Lay a piece of aluminum foil lightly over the pan and return to the oven. Bake for 17 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool. Repeat with remaining cups and filling. Makes 24 pieces.

I use these in so many more ways than just “crepes”. In both sweet or savory recipes, as wraps, tortillas, noodles – they are a great way to still make those dishes you love without the unneeded carbs.

Don’t be afraid of making crepes – and you don’t need a special pan. The first one may flop, but you’ll get the hang of it quickly. Then you can use them for enchiladas, burritos, lasagna, sandwiches, or just roll up with a sprinkle of Cinnamon-Splenda inside. They’re a very versatile thing to keep on hand. (They also freeze great. Just put a piece of waxed paper, or plastic wrap between each one.)

You can add 1 tablespoon Splenda, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, or sweet spices for a sweet version. Or herbs and other spices for savory.

These are very tender and will be more moist than regular crepes. They are what I use in my Chicken Pot Pie with Crepes, which has been very popular.

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1/2 cup ricotta cheese (stats are for Part-Skim / lowfat)

4 eggs

1/4 cup flour

3 tablespoons milk

Pinch of salt

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In a medium bowl beat the Ricotta with the eggs. Beat in the flour, salt, milk. Allow to sit for 15 minutes.

Heat an 8-inch nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. Coat with vegetable cooking spray when hot. Pour in 2 tablespoons of batter and immediately swirl the pan to coat the entire surface in a thin layer. Allow to cook, without turning, until completely done. The top should be no longer shiny and when you touch it it’s not wet. The bottom will be have a very slight golden color. If it’s too dark, lower the heat.

(If you are a new crepe-maker, these can be next to impossible to flip and they don’t need to be.) Gently loosen the edges with a spatula and slide out of the pan onto a plate. Very lightly spray the top with vegetable spray – this way you can stack them on top of each other.

Lightly coat the pan with cooking spray before each crepe. Proceed with above directions until batter is gone. Allow the crepes to cool to room temperature and then wrap the plate tightly with plastic wrap. These keep well in the fridge – unfilled – for several days.

Since these are so moist, letting them sit uncovered for a half hour or so will help them get that dry, ‘lacy’ edge.

An Italian dessert full of sweet ricotta cream between layers of light sponge cake soaked, in this case, in sugar free raspberry syrup. So glorious!

I’ve seen them un-iced, or completely covered with cream – either way it’s a wonderful thing. Don’t be discouraged with looking at the length of the recipe – it’s not hard, just a lot of steps. And it’s so worth it!

In a large bowl beat together the eggs, sugar sub, and vanilla for 10 minutes or until pale, tripled in volume and forms a ribbon when the beaters are lifted.

Very carefully, with a spatula, fold in the flour/salt just until moistened. Divide evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 10-13 minutes, or until golden and they don’t indent when you touch them in the middle. Allow to cool on wire rack for 10-15 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge and invert onto rack. (May need to run a cake/pie server under the cake if it wants to stick to the pan.) Cool completely.

Raspberry Sauce:

2 cups fresh raspberries

1/2 cup Splenda

Pinch of salt

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

In a medium saucepan place raspberries, Splenda, salt, and lemon juice. Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. (May be made 2 days in advance and kept in the fridge.)

In a food processor combine ricotta, vanilla, Fiori, and Splenda until smooth and silky. Transfer to a bowl, cover and chill, if not using right away. (May be made 2 days in advance and kept in the fridge. Remove from fridge to set at room temp for 30 minutes before assembling the cake.)

In a saucepan or stockpot heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sausage, onion, and garlic. Cook, breaking up with spoon, until sausage is browned and onions are softened. Add zucchini, dried basil, oregano, pepper flakes, salt, black pepper, tomatoes, tomato sauce, and chicken broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. Add spinach and pasta, if using, and continue to cook until pasta is done, about 7 minutes.

Meanwhile in a small bowl stir the fresh, chopped basil into the ricotta cheese. When soup is finished, ladle into shallow bowls. Carefully add 1/4 cup of the ricotta-basil mixture to the bowl. Sprinkle with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Makes 8 servings.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar sub. Beat in whole egg, egg white, vanilla extract, almond extract, and ricotta cheese. In a small bowl mix the flour, almond flour, salt, and baking powder. Stir into the ricotta mixture just until moistened. Fold in 1 1/4 cup berries.

Fill muffin cups with batter. Press the remaining berries on the top of the batter and sprinkle with Splenda. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden on the edges and a tester comes out with moist crumbs. Makes 12 regular-sized muffins.